Instagram users decline 70000% as platform eliminates ‘likes’

Culture

Instagram usage is down 70000% as the social media platform is doing away with “likes” so that people can feel better about themselves.

If you can’t see how many people have liked a post, the theory goes, a person’s feelings won’t be hurt by one person’s photo getting a lot of likes while their own similar photo wallows in obscurity. However, this is only the first step of Instagram’s self-esteem crusade. In the new year, they will be rolling out new guidelines so that photos have to reflect real life.

Things that will be banned include makeup, beautifully plated food, and idyllic family scenes. In a statement, Instagram said “Being bombarded with a carefully curated slice of a person’s life can cause people to compare and feel like abject failures. By ensuring that people are showing their real lives, not their best lives, we believe we can make people feel better about their social media experience and their lives.”

It is rumored that Instagram will look into banning milestones such as graduations, weddings, and babies to protect people who may want these things that they do not have.